Prominent figures have also come forward pressing for the abolishment of DEI altogether in recent months, contributing to backlash against such programs. Tech mogul Elon Musk, The Free Press founder Bari Weiss, and billionaire hedge fund manager Bill Ackman have all called for an end to DEI.
Ackman – a Harvard alum who has led calls for firing Harvard President Claudine Gay over her handling of antisemitism on campus since the Oct. 7 terrorist attacks on Israel by Hamas – urged a return to merit-based hiring earlier this month while suggesting Gay landed her role at the Ivy League institution due to the university's DEI policies.
Harvard's DEI initiatives were dealt a significant blow over the summer, when the U.S. Supreme Court ruled its use of affirmative action in admissions was unconstitutional. That ruling is expected to inspire more challenges to DEI practices in the employment arena.
DEI was also tamped down in other areas of academia outside the courts. Florida Governor Ron DeSantis and Oklahoma Governor Kevin Stitt, both Republicans, banned DEI in state colleges and universities this year.
Meanwhile, looking to 2024, those who want to see DEI go the way of the dodo are feeling momentum behind the successes aimed at stopping the practice seen by critics as reverse discrimination.
"DEI exists to be a jobs programs for otherwise unemployable mediocrities who ruin everything they touch, " Will Hild, executive director of Consumers First wrote in a post on X on Wednesday. "Everyone should cheer as they crash and burn."
Originally published by: Breck Dumas, Lydia Hu, Sarah Rumpf-Whitten and Eric Revell on FOX Business